Longtime U.S. women’s national team captain Becky Sauerbrunn has announced her retirement from professional soccer.

Sauerbrunn, 39, shared the news on social media, writing in her post: “It’s time. You work hard. You take each moment. And then it happens .. You wake up one day and realize you’re still dreaming. And then you work even harder to do the impossible—to hold onto that dream, to shape it, to stretch it out, for as long as you can. Knowing full well that one day you would either have to let it go or watch it slip from your grasp .. But you do it anyway. Because it’s worth it. Nothing will compare to the last sixteen years. How could it? The challenge of chasing victory. The bravery to fail. The willingness to suffer. The joy and relief when you achieve it. The drive to go again. Sixteen years ago I woke up dreaming and I haven’t slept since. That makes it sound easy. It was never easy. But even so, I’d run it back .. Because what a gift. Ninety minutes finished, steam rising off our bodies—the sense of a job well done. Dirty jerseys and scraped legs, all in the service of clean tackles and cleaner sheets. Knowing that if I step here, they’ll go there, and now I can win it. The tilt of a head and a raised eyebrow that tells my teammate everything that needs to be done .. Of course I’d do it all again. In a heartbeat.

To the coaches who believed in me. To the fans who supported us. To the admin and support staff who kept me moving. To my friends and family who stood by me. To my partner for all the practice reps and knowing not to critique them. And to all my teammates who bought in and fought both for each other and for an idea bigger than ourselves. Thank you. It was an honor and a privilege—to play with you and for you. It means the world to me that you gave me so much. I never took any of it for granted, but I also know nothing I say or do will ever be enough to repay you. All I can do is hope that you got to share in some of the joy I felt every time I stepped onto a field—that you got to dream with me, even if just for a little while.

This isn’t the end. I’ll be around. I love this game too much to leave it for good. But for the first time in sixteen years I’m going to find a quiet moment and close my eyes for a bit. Excited to see where I wake up next. With so much love and gratitude, Becky”

Sauerbrunn, one of the greatest defenders and leaders in program history, represented the U.S. on the senior level 219 times – the 10th-most in USWNT history. On 42 of those occasions she served as captain, the fifth-most in USWNT history. She finishes her career as a two-time World Cup champion and 2012 Olympic gold medalist, and was a three-time NWSL champion and a four-time NWSL defender of the year. Sauerbrunn was also named to the NWSL Best XI seven times, more than any other player.

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